Over 900 graduates receive diplomas at Hudson County Community College commencement

Some 925 graduates of Hudson County Community College heard about how their experiences at the Jersey City school will prepare them to achieve bigger and better things, and were told to give back to their communities, during last night's commencement ceremony at New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark.

The ceremony started with a convocation from the Rev. Michael Braden, vice president of ministry at Saint Peter's University, in which he expressed the hope that the HCCC graduates would contribute to the greater good as they grow older.

"May they have the hearts to change the world, one smile and one kind act at at a time," Braden said.

Dr. Glen Gabert, HCCC president, recognized the role that the local Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) honor society chapter played in enhancing the college experience of many of its graduates.

"I personally think we're the top PTK in the country," Gabert said.

Gabert then honored Hudson County Executive Tom DeGise with the Heritage Award in recognition of his efforts to devote resources to HCCC to make it a place where students can get started building successful careers and that would make them successful people.

Upon accepting his award, DeGise started with a joke about the graduate's school spirit after they let out a special roar to expres their class pride, which triggered lots of laughter among the graduates.

"You're almost as loud as those in the class of 2013," he said. "We're going to have to work on that a little," PTK's Executive Director, Rod Risley, said that Harriet Tubman, who escaped slavery and later helped many others do the same in the 19th century, was one of his heroes, because once she was able to escape slavery, she was never the same again.

"When she crossed the line to freedom, she looked around to see if she was the same person because everywhere she looked there was glory," Risley said. "Have any of you (among the graduates) ever had the same feelings or the same experience? Maybe this is that experience."

Risley then said that HCCC students should take pride in having completed an education there at an affordable price, despite the fact that HCCC is a communtiy college and that community colleges are not always viewed as prestigious, since many of the nation's top four-year universities, even Ivy League schools, recruit HCCC students because they trust the students will be successful.

Diana Angelo, the class valedictorian, said she was proud of her classmates achievements and diversity.

"We've had students from every race, every country...We've had single mothers, we've had people in the military. Many of us are the first in our families (to graduate college)," Angelo said. "Reaching the top means something different to eveyone, but I know we all got there. I want you to remember what you accomplished here."